New footage shows bizarre deep-sea fish that sees through its forehead

[Judi Lynn]

By Nicoletta Lanese published about 1 hour ago

Barreleye fish live in the ocean twilight zone.



(Image credit: © 2021 MBARI)

Thousands of feet beneath the surface of Monterey Bay off California, scientists recently captured footage of a fish with a bulbous, translucent head and green orb-like eyes that peer out through its forehead.

This bizarre creature, known as a barreleye fish (Macropinna microstoma), is very rarely seen. Researchers with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) have only spotted the species nine times, despite having sent their remotely operated vehicles (ROV) on more than 5,600 dives in the fish's habitat, MBARI tweeted on Dec. 9.

But last week, a team of scientists deployed MBARI's ROV Ventana and caught sight of a barreleye fish suspended in the water.

At the time, the ROV was cruising at a depth of about 2,132 feet (650 meters) in the Monterey Submarine Canyon, one of the deepest submarine canyons on the Pacific coast, Thomas Knowles, a senior aquarist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, told Live Science in an email. "The barreleye first appeared very small out in the blue distance, but I immediately knew what I was looking at. It couldn’t be mistaken for anything else," he said.

More:
https://www.livescience.com/barreleye-fish-seen-on-dive?utm_source=notification

[left-of-center2012]

1. The world is an amazing place

I used to think my ex-wife had eyes in the back of her head.

[2naSalit]

2. What a fascinating looking creature!

[LuvLoogie]

3. That's not a fish...

It's a submarine piloted by two extraterrestrials.